Son hurts himself now

I posted here last week under "12 yr. old son suddently out of control". His behavior is still the same and he is now scratching himself on his arms when he gets really angry. He got into trouble in school yesterday and lost control of his temper. He scratched up his arms pretty bad. I tried to talk to him this morning and asked why he was so angry all the time, what makes him loose his temper, etc. He just said he didn't know. I feel like I am walking on egg shells around him. He had blood work done yesterday and one of the things his doctor is testing for is Lyme's Disease. He also said it's possible he could be bi-polar, since his dad is. He slams doors, throws things, yells and screams at us, uses foul language, etc. He used to always ask me to lie down with-him at night in bed, or he would want to lie with-me and dad in bed while watching TV with us. Not any more. He just wants to be alone in his room, playing on computer games, on his cell, etc. It is a battle for me to get him to go anywhere with us because, as he puts it, "the car ride is too long". If I force him, he gets angry, kicks the car seats, yells, screams, etc. This isn't all the time - but alot of times. I am trying to find the right therapist for him right now. I wish his doctor would call me with the blood work results so I could know for sure what is going on. We took him off his asthma inhalers last week also because of the steriods in them, hoping this is what is setting him off. We are just trying everything. I am so scared and worried for him.

In addition to a therapist, you might want to make an appointment with a child psychiatrist now. It can take a few weeks or months to get into a good one so it's a good idea to start calling around now. Child psychiatrists are the only ones who can diagnose and treat bipolar disorder if that indeed is what is emerging.

I agree he needs to see a psychiatrist as soon as possible. My difficult child was diagnosis with depression and hers came out through anger not being sad. She did a complete disconnect with the entire family. All she wanted to do was chat on the computer, text friends and sleep.
She was always angry. I don't have any experience with BiPolar (BP) but do with depression.
Please get him checked. It gets more serious when they start to cut.
Best of luck,
Robin

I also agree with Smallworld. Bipolar or not, I think he's got some major depression going on right now. I would NOT trust this with a regular MD. He sounds exactly like when my son first started and I can't tell you how I wish we could have gotten better treatment started earlier. Your son has a lot going on with him- more than he can digest and process on his own and he's now starting to take it out on himself instead of lashing out all the time. But, whatever it is, it's more than he can handle.

My son was biting his hands for stress relief starting in fourth grade. He is 13 now. I could tell when he had a bad day at school from the tooth marks on his hands. He was also scratching his arms and leaving bruises on his inner elbow. It was all from stress and tension at school. The therapist said to ignore it and taught him anger management techniques. We talked to the school about his IEP and allowing him to leave the room under stress. Slowly, gradually, the marks started disappearing and he started succeeding in school. But in seventh he was diagnosed with depression and started taking abilify and that has made all the difference. Now I think self injuring and depression are linked and were for him. The doctor in the hospital said that depression and mania are not opposite sides of the same coin, they are different coins. He said our son has just plain old depression with no mania and there is no reason to think they are linked unless you see it. But you have to do something before it turns into cutting. Cutting is a hard habit to break, we've seen with our friends' children.

It is so hard to find a therapist where I live - a good one anyway. I have a call in to 2 therapists, but have not heard back. These symptons came on so suddenly, it seems anyway, for my son. He used to be so comical, funny, witty, etc. That is all gone now. He just seems so angry but I cannot find out why. He is so withdrawn from his dad and me also. I feel so helpless right now.

Is he on any medication, such as a stimulant or an antidepressant? Both of those can cause a child to reel out of control. Was he the one on Straterra? If so, and he has never done this before, I'd think it was the Straterra. That is nasty stuff in so many kids. I'm not anti-medication. I've taken medications since I was 23 and I'm 56, but I also know that some medications that are supposed to perform a certain function just made me plain ole worse.

Cutting is related to abuse and borderline personality disorder and can also be caused by drug use. My daughter used to cut so I learned quite a lot about it. Of course, there are other reasons for cutting. I'd go to a psychiatrist, not a therapist. This is beyond a therapist in my opinion.

My son was on Pulmicort. His doctor put him on this when he had the beginning stages of pneumonia. His doctor said there was a small amount of steriods in it but there was also another medicine in it (cannot remember the name) that he is more worried about. The other medication in the Pulmicort could be the problem. So we took him off Pulmicort and Advair last Friday. My son is being tested for Lymes Disease also. He complains daily about the pain in his legs. He is not cutting but rather scratching his arms to the point they bleed. His arms looked so bad this morning. I have a call in to a Psychiatrist right now and hope he calls me back soon. As far as drugs, I doubt this. Where in the world would he get them from??? He is home most of the time. If he is, I'm sure it will show up in his blood work. I just want answers so I can start the path to recovery for him. Whether it's the Pulmicort, Lyme's Disease, etc. I just want to know!

Let the psychiatrist know this is an emergency, but not enough to go to ER at this point, just that you need a "rush" appointment. I know you have a trouble with what is available in your area, but I hope this is a board certified child/adolescent psychiatrist. If not, it's still better to get a psychiatrist on board.

This doctor was recommended to me by counseling center that I called. He is a Psychiatrist (I assumed they were all board certified) and works with children/adolescents. I feel better with-my son seeing a Psychiatrist rather than a Licensed Clinical Social Worker. I hope to god he calls me today!!!

Thankfully, our local mental health department called me yesterday and they do have child Pychiatrists that he can see. They are setting me up right now to come in for the 1st time evaluation and then he will be assigned a Pychiatrist. In meantime, I am still waiting for his doctor to call me with the blood results.